Self-Study

All programs complete their self-study by completing the self-assessment guide developed for their functional area by the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS). The workspace for this process is housed in the Anthology Compliance Assist product. The CAS Resource Center offers information on a number of topics including CAS Basics.

Planning for the Self-Study

The Annual Program Review (APR) process at the University of Idaho begins with the program’s self-study. Programs are encouraged to approach the self-study as a team, including program leader(s), program staff members, external/campus/community stakeholders, students and faculty, where feasible. The team should bring diverse perspective, in an inclusive and respectful approach. Program directors, by default, should have access to the program’s workspace in Anthology. To request access for other team members, please complete this form.

Writing the Self-Study

Responses to all parts of the CAS self-assessment guide should be completed in Anthology. Basic instructions are available here, or contact assessment@uidaho.edu if you require assistance. Each self-assessment guide covers 12 standards and programs should do their best to complete each one.

CAS General Standards:

1. Mission
2. Program and Services
3. Student Learning, Development, and Success
4. Assessment
5. Access, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
6. Leadership, Management, and Supervision
7. Human Resources
8. Communication and Collaboration
9. Ethics, Law, and Policy
10. Financial Resources
11. Technology
12. Facilities and Infrastructure

2021-22 is our pilot year for this process. In cases where data is not yet available, a brief explanation and description of when it will be available may suffice. For programs completing this for the first time, they will begin with a blank template. In subsequent years, the self-study will require updates and progress reports on all items. CAS provides detailed information on outcome domains and dimensions, how to develop learning outcomes, how to apply learning outcomes and how to assess learning outcomes that might be helpful.

Completing the Self-Study

The self-study is considered ready for division review when all CAS standards have responses. Additionally, programs should provide appropriate evidence of how the standard is met or in support of their response, by uploading or linking this evidence in the report. Once the self-study is ready, it will be reviewed by the division. The program can expect to receive the following feedback from their division:

• Rating for each item (whether the standard is met based on the response/evidence provided)
• General comments on the program’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
• 3-5 recommendations that support meeting or exceeding the standards

Following the division review, the program’s responses and the division feedback will be reviewed by the Provost’s Office. The Provost’s Office may provide additional feedback to the program from its institutional review and will consider the comments/recommendations made by the division in support of institutional effectiveness and mission fulfillment efforts.

Following the institutional review, programs will create an Action Plan in Anthology to remedy discrepancies or unmet standards and implement priority recommendations.

Updating the Self-Study

Each year, programs will revisit their self-study and provide any relevant updates. These updates should include addressing any changes to how the program is meeting the standard, updating relevant evidence of each standard and detailing the progress that has been made on the action plan. The first update will occur in 2022-23.

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